The invention pertains to ultrasonic dental instruments. More specifically, the invention provides ultrasonic tips for such instruments.
The invention is particularly applicable in the periodontal treatment of dental implants.
Recently, the increasing occurrence of peri-implant disease has been reported due to the rapid increase of dental implant therapy throughout the world. In peri-implantitis, exposed fixture surfaces of dental implants that lose osseointegration with the supportive bone are contaminated by bacterial biofilms and/or mineralized deposits.
To treat peri-implantitis, it is necessary to decontaminate the exposed contaminated fixture surfaces of the dental implant. Ultrasonic technology has been reported as an effective method for the treatment of peri-implant disease.
As known to those skilled in the art, most of the dental implants today are in titanium. However, the elements of different electron potential on the titanium implant surface cause the risk of fixture erosion, and the optimal materials of ultrasonic tip for debridement of microstructured surfaces of titanium implants have not been properly evaluated yet.
In addition, existing ultrasonic instruments for the treatment of peri-implantitis are not satisfactory.
Accordingly, there is a strong need for an ultrasonic system allowing safe and complete debridement of implants for the treatment of peri-implantitis. There is more particularly a need for an ultrasonic tip which, when mounted on an ultrasonic instrument, allows for optimal results in the treatment of infected dental implants.